Founded in 1893, it is currently owned by Akihiro Iio, a 5th generation vinegar producer.

Located in Miyazu, Kyoto Prefecture – which is at the base of the Tango Peninsula and looks out over the Wakasa Bay – the town is famed for its delicious fish and excellent rice production. Iio Jozo’s fundamental goal is to produce the best quality vinegar; we think they have more than achieved this!

From this quality, local rice comes expertly crafted vinegar.  Using only the best pesticide-free rice as a raw ingredient, it is fermented with their in-house Sumoto-moromi Sake, which is made by their own master brewer. This method has been in place since the company began and is the secret behind their exquisite vinegars.

The Sake Less Temaki is aged for 10 years and combined with Kurozu black vinegar. It possesses a natural sweetness which makes it an excellent vinegar for sushi rice, with slight acidic tones, sweetness and accompanied by a wonderful umami punch. Sake lees are the leftover residue from sake production, they have a sweet, savoury and umami flavour.

Iio Jozo’s Fujisu premium rice vinegar has a rich yet mellow flavour and a high ratio of 320g rice per litre of vinegar, fermented for up to 3 years. After fermentation, the vinegar is matured for at least 240 days. It takes on a beautiful amber colour, with a fantastic aroma. With a more sophisticated and rounded taste than simple vinegar, chefs love to use this in sushi, pickles and dressings. It provides the perfect balance of acidic tang, sweetness and umami, elevating your cooking to the next level.

Whilst the Genmai Fuji black vinegar is made solely from brown (genmai) rice and spring water from the Tango peninsula, and is traditionally brewed with a long maturation period to create a rich flavour of malt and umami.
Iio Jozo’s simple blend of ingredients combined with five generations of knowledge, craftsmanship and intuition of the family create an incomparable umami flavour in all their masterfully brewed vinegars